Russian museum sends rarely loaned portraits to London
The staff of Moscow's Tretyakov Gallery is packing up some of Russia's finest paintings to send to London for a landmark exhibition.
The 26 portraits being sent to the National Portrait Gallery for an exhibition March 17 to June 26 are part of an exchange that also includes major British works loaned to Russia.
The Tretyakov portraits going to London show elite artists from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Tretyakov director Zelfira Tregulova singles out two - portraits of writer Fyodor Dostoevsky by Vasily Perov and of composer Modest Mussorgsky by Ilya Repin - for their powerful depiction and "profound analysis".
The portraits from the Tretyakov are rarely loaned for foreign exhibition. The iconic portrait of Dostoevsky was last seen in Britain in 1959.
The 1881 Mussorgsky portrait was completed just before the composer died of alcoholism at the age of 42. The work shows the harsh reality of his condition, but at the same time conveys his energy and spirit.
Ms Tregulova said the show presents a unique insight into a golden age of Russian culture leading up to the 1917 revolution, showing "Russian creativity and the originality of those people with its pluses and...